The Cyber Chronicles VII - Sabre (26 page)

Sabre looked
up at him. "What does that tell you?"

"That, in
time, you could develop other emotional responses, like jealousy.
It's a good sign."

Sabre
unplugged the cable. "And when you stop plugging me into a monitor,
that will be a good sign that you've stopped treating me like
equipment."

"You're
angry." Tarl shook his head. "The only way to piss you off is to
treat you like a machine."

"Or hurt
Tassin."

"Yeah, that's
because for a whole year, the cyber forced you to protect her. It's
become part of your conditioning."

"No." Sabre
stared into space, frowning. "It's not that. The cyber did prompt
me, and punished me on occasion, but I wanted to help her. I was
trapped by it, yeah, but I didn't mind so much.

"Why is
that?"

He hesitated,
looking a little embarrassed. "I thought she was beautiful, and...
I wanted to stay with her, look after her."

Tarl nodded.
"I guess some basic instincts weren’t completely cut off by the
brain block. You developed a stunted set of emotional responses in
the year you were with her before, I would guess. When those
memories were blocked off, you became a clean slate, as Myon Two
intended. Although your memories have been restored, the emotional
responses you developed haven't, so you're back to square one in
that department. But, given enough time, you will develop them
again. You need another year or so of uncomplicated human
interaction. You have a massive inferiority complex, and you're
suffering from post-traumatic stress."

"Great." Sabre
sighed. "Is there any hang up I don't have?"

"What do you
think you'd feel if I died?"

"I don't know.
Sad?"

"That's what
you should feel, yeah. But you're just guessing, aren't you? You
can't actually imagine feeling sad about my death."

"Not really.
Maybe I'd feel it, though, if it happened. I could always kill you
and find out."

Tarl chuckled.
"Yeah, right. You hate killing, remember? Why is that?"

"It's...
something I was forced to do. It's what I was designed to do,
and... I don't want to hurt people. I never did."

Tarl placed a
hand on Sabre's shoulder. "That's because you're a good guy, bud.
No amount of conditioning or programming can ever change your
personality."

Sabre rose and
went to the door, glancing back before opening it. "Thanks."

The tech
smiled and waved a depreciating hand. He leant back, then realised
that the stool had no back, grabbed the trolley as he fell and
landed with a grunt and a shrill clatter of instruments. Sabre
chuckled and left the cyber-tech to pick himself up out of the
debris.

Sabre pushed
open the door to his room and froze as an alien life sign appeared
on the scanners, sweeping the room with his eyes. A strange grey
lump lay in the middle of the bed, and he approached it, trying to
make out what it was. A pointed-eared head lifted, and yellow eyes
gazed up at him from a black bandit's mask.

Sabre grinned.
"Purr!"

The mosscat
stretched, revealing pointed teeth in a strange grin, and his
disembodied voice spoke from the air before him. "Friend Sabre.
It's about time you returned."

"It's great to
see you, Purr. Where have you been hiding?"

"In the
forest, for the last three years."

Sabre sat on
the edge of the bed. "Are you well?"

"I'm fine. I
was getting fat, anyway. This land is easy to live in for me."

"Yeah, a Death
Zone creature would find it easy."

Purr sat up
and groomed his belly fur. "I had a feeling Tassin would find you.
She doesn't give up, that one. She ransacked this castle for three
years, looking for that sword."

"Yeah, she was
pissed off with me for hiding it."

"It's good
that you're back. I'm glad."

"Me too."

Chapter Eighteen

Sabre kicked
the empty laser cradle on the battlements and turned away with a
curse. The tarpaulin that had covered it lay in a crumpled heap at
his feet, where he had dropped it after tugging it off. Evidently
Torrian, or Dellon, had left the cradles covered to give the
impression that the castle was still armed. Tassin’s guard sergeant
had informed her of the weapons’ removal shortly after her return,
and she had told Sabre about it at breakfast that morning, a day
after Tarl had repaired the damage to the cyber’s shoulder.

The ammunition
was also gone, along with the soldiers he had trained, and he knew
everything now resided at Torrian’s castle, where the laser cannons
were doubtless installed. It came as no surprise, but it
complicated matters. Tassin was once more vulnerable, and Torrian
now held all the power, his fortress impregnable and his army
undefeatable. Sabre had no doubt the King would start a new war as
soon as he was returned to his kingdom, and, armed with the laser
cannons, he would win it in a few hours. Sabre leant on the rampart
and gazed across the forest, pondering. He would have to go to
Torrian’s fortress and disable the weapons, since they were too
heavy to steal from under an army’s nose.

Torrian would
also have to die now. He was a vindictive man who would want
revenge, and, having once owned such powerful weapons, he would not
rest until he had more. Now that the Death Zone was gone, crossing
the Badlands to find more would be fairly easy. Some men would
still die from radiation poisoning, but Torrian would get what he
wanted in the end. He straightened and turned at the sound of
footsteps. Tassin approached, her eyes skipping off the empty
cradle to meet his with deep sorrow in their depths. She looked
lovely in one of her rich court gowns, this one a deep burgundy
with salmon pink lace on the sleeves and skirt and a matching
bodice hugging her tiny waist. Her hair was swept up in a simple,
elegant coil, and a delicate emerald necklace nestled in the hollow
of her throat.

She came to
him and slipped her hand into his. “I suppose we should have
expected this to happen.”

“
Oh, I did. Torrian would never leave such powerful weapons in
the hands of a lesser king, especially a dolt like Dellon. All he’s
done is signed his own death warrant, though. I guess he didn’t
expect you to return, or me, for that matter. It’s a pity he didn’t
blow his own head off while he was learning how to use them, but I
guess that would be too much to hope for. This means I’ll have to
kill him as soon as he returns to his kingdom.”

"How will you
do it?" she asked.

“
I’ll snipe him. It will be quicker and more merciful than he
deserves, but no one will see me. I’ll also have to disable those
laser cannons, or whatever shithead cousin inherits might be just
as gung-ho with them as Torrian. We won’t be safe as long as
they’re in enemy hands.”

Her eyes
widened in alarm. “That will be dangerous.”

“
Not all that dangerous, for me.” He smiled. “He may have got
his hands on modern weapons that can be used against us, but you
have the best weapon of all.”

“
What?”

“
Me.”

She frowned
and shook her head. “You’re not –”

“
Yeah, I am. It’s okay, really. Tarl’s right, this is what I
do. It’s what I am, and I’m good at it. With me on your side,
you’ve got no worries. I have one huge advantage over all other
weapons, too.”

“
What’s that?”

“
I can’t be turned against you.”

She looked
down at his hand, biting her lip. “I really don’t want you to have
to do this, Sabre.”

“
I know. I must, though, and you know it.”

“
Yes. I wish it was different. To me, you’re the man I love,
not a weapon. I don’t care what you or Tarl say. I will never think
of you like that.”

“
Hey.” He cupped her chin with his free hand and raised her
head to gaze into her eyes. “I know that. It’s just one of the many
reasons I love you, and I want to do this for you – for us. I have
a stake in our future, too, you know.”

She nodded.
“Yes, you do. I hope that makes it easier for you.”

“
Hell, this isn’t a hard mission. Piece of cake, in fact.
There’s no way a bunch of primitives, even armed with modern
weapons, which I bet they can barely use, can hope to win against a
cyber, or even be a threat. I won’t get a scratch, I guarantee
it.”

“
Normally I would object to being called a primitive, but I
won’t argue with you on that point today.”

“
Good.” He smiled. “You’re not quite a cave woman, but you do
have some pretty hairy attributes.”

She giggled.
“Like what?”

“
Like being the most diabolically determined female in the
universe, luckily for me, and a warrior queen, of course. And
you’re
not
coming
with me.”

“
I know.” Tassin stepped closer and slipped her arms around
him. “I wish I could, but I’m needed here, so you’ll have to manage
alone. Or take some men.”

He hugged her.
“No, I don’t need any help; they’ll only get in the way.”

“
Promise me you’ll be careful.”

He chuckled
and kissed the top of her head, inhaling the warm clean scent of
her hair, which reminded him of roses. “That’s like telling a shark
to be careful in a pond full of minnows. This will be like child’s
play to me, so don’t worry, okay? I’d offer to bring you his head,
but I intend to blow it into a red mist.”

She shuddered.
“I don’t want his head. I just want an end to strife, and with
Torrian, this is the only way, I think.”

“
Yeah, I should have killed him last time I was here, then he
wouldn’t have been able to hurt Dena and put that little shit,
Dellon, on your throne. It’s time to end him.”

She managed a
smile, although it was clearly forced. "If you’re suspected of it,
it will start a war with Pradish, because I won’t hand you over for
execution.”

“
Even if you did, they’d have a hell of a job trying to chop
off my head.”

“
If you think I will even let them try, you’re very much
mistaken. If his investigators accuse you, I’ll give you an alibi,
but unfortunately I have the greatest motive for wanting him dead,
other than Dena, and no one else knows what he did to
her.”

“
I doubt they’ll accuse me,” he said. “They won’t be able to
prove anything, even if they do, so tell them I went exploring or
something.”

“
Unfortunately, it will throw Pradish into chaos, since he has
no heir. His cousins will vie for the throne.”

“
Good. It will keep them busy. If it causes too much shit, they
should hold elections and become a democracy. It’s time Omega Five
modernised, since it will soon be rejoining the rest of civilised
society. I’m sure a thriving tourist trade will spring up, for
people who want a taste of medieval culture.”

She drew back
to look up at him. “What about Arlin? Do you think it should also
be democratic?”

“
Hey, Arlin’s got a great queen, but, in all honesty, I’d
rather you weren’t one. I’d much rather live in a comfy little
cottage, not a big draughty castle, and think how much more time
we’d have to spend together if you weren’t busy all day with
affairs of state?”

“
That’s true. I’ve never considered the option of stepping
down. I was born to my post, and giving it up is hard to
contemplate, especially after we fought so hard to regain it. There
is something to be said of anonymity and a simple life, though.
Running a kingdom is hard work.”

“
You should give it some serious thought,” he said. “We had to
get rid of Dellon, so it was still worth it. I’d give up being a
cyber in a heartbeat if I could, and I was born to my post, too. Be
glad you have the option.”

“
I am. I will think about it.”

****

King Sharmian
gazed across the field at the distant dark mass of Torrian's army,
his eyes narrowed in the early morning sunlight. For a month he had
retreated across his lands, leading Torrian on a meandering course
that kept him away from towns and villages, always staying out of
his reach. Mounted raiding parties had caused minor skirmishes and
cost a few lives, but Torrian's foot soldiers could not catch up,
and the armies had yet to meet in battle. Sharmian was weary of
running now. He longed to confront Torrian in an all-out battle,
but heeded Tassin's advice and kept away. When he spoke of making a
stand, Dena reminded him of it.

Sharmian
raised his spyglass, and his mouth dropped open in surprise. An
entire legion of soldiers had broken away from the main host and
marched towards Sharmian's camp. As he watched, a second company
detached and headed towards him. A squirm of fear went through his
gut, and he studied their banners. A rearing golden stallion on a
royal blue field waved in the wind, and his heart leapt. Lowering
his glass, he turned to the general who stood beside him.

"Ready the
troops. Queen Tassin's men are leaving Torrian's camp. If his men
attack them, we will join them in battle and crush that
bastard."

The general
saluted and marched off to shout orders at the men, rousing them to
arms. Sharmian glanced down as a hand slipped into his, smiling at
Dena.

"Queen Tassin
has triumphed," he said. "Her troops are leaving Torrian."

She smiled at
him. "I knew Sabre wouldn't fail."

He raised her
hand to kiss the back of it. "That man is amazing."

"Will you
fight Torrian now?"